


Batman: The Hunted

by GothamRogue81



Category: Batfamily - Fandom, Batman - All Media Types, Birds of Prey (Comic), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Corruption, Organized Crime, Politics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-22
Updated: 2017-02-27
Packaged: 2018-09-26 06:39:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9871898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GothamRogue81/pseuds/GothamRogue81
Summary: With most of the more dangerous and eccentric villains contained within Arkham and Blackgate, corruption in Gotham City has reached a new high.   The gangs and crime families that have been taking advantage of the distraction of the Rogues are now Batman's number one priority.





	1. A Thorne In Your Side

Batman tightened his grip around the man’s throat as he held him over the edge the roof. The man, a silver-haired man in his late 50’s, squirmed, gurgling as he tried to beg for mercy beneath the Dark Knight’s hand. His eyes welled with tears as he caught a glimpse of the streets below. “Your Bryantville project…it’s cancelled! Is that understood?”

The man continued to fight, so Batman continued to threaten. “I know you’re being backed by Thorne. I know that he’s greased the pockets of the Zoning Commissioner, and the Housing Council,” he growled, giving him a shake above the ground below. “But you can tell Thorne that the payoffs were for nothing, because the projects aren’t going to happen.”

He hurled the man against an air conditioning unit, cracking a few ribs in the process. The man held his side and looked up at Batman who stood over him with a menacing, demon-like appearance. “What do you care if we put up a couple of buildings?”

“I DO care, and that’s all you need to know,” Batman said, grabbing the man by the wrist and twisting his arm to the side, snapping his elbow and yanking his shoulder from its socket. The man screamed. “This corruption is going to end.”

The man was doubled over in pain, gripping his damaged limb and groaning. “I’ll tell him! I’ll tell him!” He looked up, but the Batman was gone. He burst into uncontrollable tears, rocking himself in pain.

*******************************************  
Rupert Thorne had been financially influencing politicians for years. Granted, he wasn’t alone in doing so, but Thorne’s corruption reached the highest and he used his connections to cut corners and take advantage of the citizens of Gotham, all in the name of personal profit. Word of Batman’s attacks had begun to spread. He had paid visits to several of Thorne’s informants and prospective partners. 

City officials and politicians had begun to worry. Everyone wanted to make a buck, but no one wanted to be paid a visit by the Batman. Thorne’s anger and frustration began to grow as his influence waned and numerous projects were held back or cancelled all together. 

Behind the velvet curtains of the Tobacconist’s Gentleman Club, Thorne leaned over a large table. Amidst the muffled music that the girl on the stage out front danced to, he addressed the men who surrounded him. They were a who’s who of Gotham City organized crime bosses: Roman Scionis, Warren “The Great White Shark” White, Angelo Beretti, Tobias Whale, Carmine Falcone, Sal Maroni, Sean Riley, Dragos Ibanescu, and Alexandra Kosov. 

“For fuck’s sake, what do we have to do to get rid of this son of a bitch!?” he bellowed. “This city is ours! Not his!” he boomed. 

“How is this OUR problem?” Beretti asked? He sneered, leaning back in his chair.

“How is this your problem?” Thorne asked sarcastically with a low chuckle. “We’re all affected here!" he yelled, smashing his fist on the table. "The docks, the Narrows, the Bowery, the Diamond District…all our dealings are being halted by this freak! Stagg and Daggett are running scared. Our mayoral investment couldn't handle it all and offed himself! We’re losing most of our influence with the city council and even cops that have been bought and paid for, for years, are turning tail!” He let out a sigh. “It was one thing when he had bigger threats to deal with, but most of those have been locked up in Arkham or Blackgate! Some have even found their way to Belle Reve! We had it made while they were distracting The Bat, but now he’s re-focused on us and we need to put an end to it before he puts us all out of business for good!”

“What do you suggest Rupert?” Whale asked. 

“I say we pool our interests and hunt him. Turn the tables and do whatever we can to take the Bat out, once and for all. Him AND his little belfry of junior bats and birds,” he replied. “We put a hit so big out on the market, that they’ll all be completely overpowered. All sights sent on the Gotham vigilantes. Ten million dollars a head!”

The group began to murmur amongst themselves, some shaking their head. Scionis laughed, shaking his head. “So let me get this straight...ya got, Bats, Robin, Red Robin, The Hood, Nightwing,” he paused, trying to think of more.

Riley added to the list, “Batwoman, Batgirl, Spoiler, that blue-haied mohawk chick…”

“Black Bat…” added Kosov licking her lips as she smirked.

“And Huntress,” Falcone said. “One hundred and ten million dollars? You buying Thorne?”

"Yeah, I mean, while we're at it, why don't we add Superman and the rest of the Justice League to the list...Make it a real firesale!" scoffed Beretti.

“No, we all go in together. That’s why I called everyone. It’s all our problem, so we’ll all solve it. Hell, if we have to offer more that ten a head, then we’ll do it. Whatever we have to do!”

“I don’t have a problem. My business is booming,” Maroni said. “And I’m pretty sure Riley and Dragos can agree with me.”

“And how long do you think that will last Sal?” Carmine asked him. “You think The Bat, or one of his underlings won’t eventually shut any of us down?”

“It was different in the beginning,” White said. “One guy in a mask against an entire city.” This garnered several nods. “But he’s built his own gang! A little army of masked freaks, and despite what we’d all like to say about them, they’re a danger to us.”

“So we put a bounty on them all, then.” Kosov said agreeing to the idea.

Thorne nodded. “We’ll get Cobblepot to connect us to the best of the best. Deathstroke, Deadshot, The League, China White, Anatoli Knyazev , Thomas Blake, Cheshire…any of em that want the cash. We draw out every merc, assassin, hit-man and bounty hunter there is and we send em full force.”

The room was silent as each looked around at the others. “This just might work…” Scionis said, raising a glass to toast. "To the end of the Bat and his ilk!"

They put it to a vote, to which it was unanimously approved, and after contacting the Penguin, an encrypted message was sent out across the world.

“To all who seek fortune…You are cordially invited to Gotham City for the hunt of a lifetime. Five million dollars a head. Your targets: The Bat Family. All of them. Test your skills and abilities against the most challenging prey you'll ever encounter. Let the hunt begin. “


	2. Sending A Message

Kara pressed her finger against the center of the frames of her glasses, sliding them up the bridge of her nose back to their normal position. She reached for her coffee, but let out a sigh of disappointment when she realized she had finished it over an hour ago. She looked down at the clock on the corner of her computer screen. She had spent the last five hours at her desk working on what she was hoping would be her first front page story. 

It was time. She saved her file and logged off, getting up and pushing in her chair. Tonight, she would put the finishing touches on the article. She looked around the office, checking to make sure the coast was clear, before shedding her blouse and skirt to reveal her Supergirl outfit. In a flash, she was gone from the office, and flying above Metropolis.   
Out across the bay, the darkness of her destination contrasted with that of her home city. She flew through the cold air, a determined look on her face as she flew over pitch black water below as she made her way to….Gotham.

Her caped silhouette cast a shadow against the moon as she soared across the bay to Gotham City. She looked below as she approached the mainland, her enhanced vision magnifying the sights below as she searched for her target. Finally, she narrowed her vision as the blue neon-lit sign reading “The Iceberg Longue” came into view. Like a missile, she suddenly veered downwards, speeding towards the ground. She landed swiftly on the rooftop of the Penguin’s domicile, surprisingly light as she dropped to a crouching position.   
On the roof, three women turned around and looked at her. Huntress, Batgirl and Black Canary turned from the skylight they had been peering down into, to see Supergirl behind them. 

“Hi!” the Girl-of-Steel said quietly, but cheerfully to them.

“Supergirl?” Batgirl asked. “What are you doing here?” 

She approached them, replying, “I was hoping I could tag along on tonight’s mission.” 

Huntress looked at her and then the others. “Look Supergirl, no offense or anything, but we’re fine. We don’t need anyone else on this.” She raised her crossbow as if to offer proof that she could handle herself.

“Oh no, I understand,” she said, shaking her head. “I just want to observe,” she said.

“Did Clark send you?” Canary asked, arching a brow.

“Nothing like that,” Supergirl said with a laugh. “To be honest, I’m writing an article…”she paused shaking her head and laughing to herself. “Kara is writing an article…on female heroes. 

Kind of a female empowerment piece. I was just hoping to include the Birds of Prey in the article,” she said.

The girls looked at each other, shrugging. “I don’t have a problem with it,” Batgirl said.

Huntress looked at Canary who just smirked. "Fine..," she grunted. 

Batgirl whispered, "Cobblepot has some alarming guests at his club tonight. We caught wind of it earlier this week . Chatter mentioned several dangerous people having been invited to the club for a special meeting,"

The four women looked down into the room below to see who had been invited. In the office below them, five guests were in the room: Rose Wilson a.k.a. Ravager, Artemis Crock a.k.a. TIgress, Scandal Savage, Nyssa Raatko, and a young man who Batgirl immediately recognized as "The Mad Dog Cain". 

"What are five people who just so happen to share the fact that they have super-villain parents, doing together meeting with Penguin?" Canary asked.

"Whatever it is, it can't be good," Huntress muttered. 

Listening in the reasoning came to light. "What's the deal Penguin?" Rose asked. "We all came a long way and risked a run in with the Bat to find out what your little message meant," she said.

Penguin grinned, his teeth grinding on his cigar. "I should have figured that the first ones to respond would be the gifted youth of the world," he chuckled. "Well kiddies, the fact of the matter is, a bounty has been placed, in which I have been asked to facilitate any monetary interactions." 

"A bounty?" Nyssa asked. "You've got to be joking," She rolled her eyes.

"You couldn't afford most of us Penguin," Scandal added.

Penguin cackled. "You're exactly right my dear," he squaked. "That's why I'm not the backer. There's more than one, and the price, I'm sure, is enough to meet all of your standards. That is, if the contract isn't enough to do so,"

The group waited. "So who is it?" Mad Dog asked.

"The Batman," he said non-chalantly. After a brief pause he added, "And the rest of his little colony." 

Nyssa, Rose and Scandal all rolled their eyes and scoffed. "You're joking right?" Rose asked.

"I'm afraid I'm doing nothing of the sort," he replied. "Ten million a head," he said.

On the rooftop, Supergirl and Canary looked at eachother and then to Huntress and Batgirl. None of the girls said anything. Below, Penguin continued to explain. "The rules are simple. Once the deadline has been reached and all of the hunters have signed up, the hunt itself can begin."

"You mean we have to wait?" Mad Dog grunted.

"Yes, you see that's the whole point," Penguin replied.

"To send as many of us as possible at them, all at the same time," Nyssa explained, figuing out the idea. "The more players in the game, the weaker they'll all be," she said.

"Exactly," Penguin confirmed. "You're clearly a lot smarter than your sister," he added.

Up above , Huntress had stepped back and was just about to attempt to blast through the skylight, but wa stopped short by Canary and Batgirl. "No! Helena!" Batgirl said, shaking her head. "It's too dangerous!"

“Why not? We have her!” Huntress snapped, pointing over at Supergirl. The girls looked at Supergirl. “She’s indestructible and they’re all just assassins. She can easily take them all out!” 

“Huntress, that’s not what I do,” Supergirl said. “I can’t kill them,” she said solemnly.

“No, but you can decommission them and send a message to whoever else Penguin’s little invite went out to,” Huntress said.

Canary looked at Batgirl. “She’s right,” she said. “If we can show them what kind of firepower they’ll be facing if they come against all of you, it could deter them.”

Supergirl didn’t wait. She wasn’t about to let cousins friend and his team be threatened by a bunch of criminals. She smashed the glass of the skylight, leaping down to the room below. They drew their guns and fired, an array of bullets bouncing off her body. She made an angry face and reached out to the closest adversary, who happened to be Scandal Savage. She yanked her by the arm, pulling it out of it’s socket, and tossing her like a rag doll across the room, using the woman’s body to clothesline Mad Dog and Nyssa, knocking them back against the wall.

She spun and roundhouse kicked Tigress, sending her flying through a table. In the scuffle, Ravager had made an escape, but Penguin wasn’t as lucky. He was struggling with a door as Supergirl walked towards him. “I suggest you retract your invitation to your friends,” she said. “If anyone attempts to take out Batman or any of his Gotham family, they’ll have to go through me, and I’m sure my cousin would love to hear of this as well.”

He sputtered, “Whatever you say blondie! Whatever you say!”

She turned, walking back towards the center of the room. As she passed by him, Mad Dog reached out from his place on the floor. She kicked him in the jaw, sending him sliding across the room, out cold. She stood under the skylight and gave them all a second glance before leaping into the air and soaring up and out into the night.  
She flew around and hovered above the group on the roof. “Sorry Batgirl,” she said, shrugging. “I couldn’t allow them to gain the upperhand,” she said. “If you need me, you know where to find me!” She shot away like a bullet, jetting away back towards Metropolis, as the Birds of Prey leapt from the roof, retreating from the action.

Below, Penguin picked up a phone, looking down at the wreckage in the room, shaking his head with disgust. “Yeah, it’s Cobblepot,” he said. “You’re going to want to up the ante on this thing,” he said. “I would contact Luthor and get yourself some of that pretty green rock he loves so much. You might need it if you catch my drift.”

The next day, Barbara Gordon and the other Birds of Prey looked at a large screen on the Watchtower’s computer. She had brought up an article from the Daily Planet. The article was about strong women who were inspirations to the next generation of girls. Kara Danvers had spent time with several female superheroes, including Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Zatarra, Raven and Starfire, and the Birds of Prey. They had reached their section of the article.

“But perhaps the strongest, most fearless women I met were the Birds of Prey, an unconventional team of women who embody brains, braun and beauty all in one. They, among the superheroine world, have the most challenging job of all: protecting the most dangerous city on the planet, Gotham City. A place so dangerous, that Batman himself finally had to begin recruiting heroes to aid him in the fight against crime. When the Dark Knight needs backup, you know it’s a bad place.

The three main members of the BoP are Batgirl, Huntress and Black Canary. These three embody the idea of sisterhood. They protect they city and have each other’s backs while doing so. Few women are as fearless as Huntress, who is ready to rage against any adversary, no matter how great in size or number. Black Canary has great strength outside and in, able to assess the situations at hand and size up the challenge appropriately, while Batgirl’s incredible intelligence and skills are the glue that holds the trio together in unity. 

These three completely symbolize what can be. While Canary does have the advantage of being a meta-human with a powerful ability, Huntress and Batgirl, as far as we know, are mortal women. The three are daughters. They’ve had heartbreak in their life. And they have molded themselves into the heroes that citizens look up to the night sky in relief of. If you train hard enough and believe in yourselves, you could be like them. It’s an attainable idea that every girl should aspire to. 

Regardless of whether or not you wear a cape or cowl, or have an ability or just a skillset, you can make a difference. You can look into the darkness of night and you can confidently stand firm and shout, I am Woman, and I am not afraid.”


End file.
